CAIRO: Following the worldwide launch of its Proliant G6 server line on March 30, HP hosted an information session at the Intercontinental Hotel CityStars to introduce the new product line to the Egyptian market. Monday's conference follows regional launches in the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait. HP will also host a session in Saudi Arabia in the coming week to promote awareness of the new line of servers. The new Proliant G6 server line was developed to maximize energy efficiency, productivity and value for money through the latest technology. The new technology allows for a 50 percent reduction in power usage, and the incorporation of the Intel Nehalem processor provides service at twice the speed of the older G5 server. "Now more than ever, customers want the best possible return on their server investments. Building on HP's long history of hardware and software development, G6 brings together the best HP innovations in energy efficiency, virtualization and services to enable our customers to do more with less, said Khitam Hindi, industry standard servers ProLiant business manager for the Middle East, in a press release on the launch. Daily News Egypt sat down with Ayman Dwidar, HP's ISS Blades business manager for the Middle East, to discuss the launch of the Proliant G6 server line, the importance of smart IT for surviving the financial crisis, and what gives HP an edge on the competition. Daily News Egypt: What are the standout features of the new server line?Ayman Dwidar: The new line is the result of over 11,000 hours of research and development and features 11 different platforms for companies to choose from. The new line has a special focus on environment-friendly features that allow for the use of less power in operating the servers and thus a smaller carbon footprint.The new line will help companies consolidate and this is very important due to problems facing data centers right now - consolidation is at the top of the agenda for many companies. How do you expect the new line to perform given the credit crunch?The credit crunch means that companies are short on cash and that IT budgets are small. Despite this, companies realize that having the latest information technology is vital and the key to success in uncertain times. The new G6 server helps companies to maximize value and performance, so I think companies are willing to invest in this technology. The G6 actually gives companies a 12-month return on their investment due to the costs they will save in energy and efficiency, so it makes sense for them to switch over. Why should companies switch over to the HP new server line now?The new line helps companies to reduce costs and increase value for the best possible performance. It supports more applications and uses less energy and all of these things will help give a company the competitive advantage they need to come through the financial crisis. Compared to our competitors, HP gives the best value for money and offers the total package of software, hardware and service to our customers. Our aim is to empower businesses. What types of Egyptian companies would benefit from this technology?All companies can benefit from quality, cost-effective IT. Telecom companies and banks have shown interest in particular. We have also introduced a new line of services called Proactive Select from HP. This service allows smaller companies to use our services on an itemized basis. So, for example, if a company needs a virtualization assistant they can get this service from us at a fixed price without signing a contract. What is HP's philosophy and how does it play into this new line?First of all, HP believes in launching new products all over the world at the same time -that way businesses in the Middle East can take advantage of new technology immediately instead of waiting. In terms of the new line, the products are centered around HP's commitment to giving customers the best possible service and performance for their investment. HP is well equipped to do this due to its status as an industry leader with large volume and progressive research and development. Are there any early indications of how the line will perform? I believe that this line has tremendous potential in the Middle East and around the world. This technology will help companies tackle the financial crisis and put themselves in a better position to navigate an uncertain future.
